The role of electronic medical record in care delivery in developing countries

ObjectivesElectronic medical record (EMR) is not only being welcomed by healthcare providers as a way to improve care delivery but also serves as a catalyst for development. The purpose of this study is to examine benefits of EMR and its ultimate contribution to development of healthcare delivery.DesignThis is a qualitative, explorative, and descriptive study using survey questionnaires and a sample size of 50 at the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra, Ghana.ResultsResults from the research indicate the importance of an EMR system in developing countries to facilitate effective and efficient data collection, data entry, information retrieval and report generation, and research. However, developed nations are not doing enough to help developing countries implement modern technology necessary to facilitate care delivery.ConclusionsTo achieve the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) number 8 by 2015, developed nations must assist poor countries to develop their human capital, funds and work with the local community to design and implement system friendly with their environment to transform and improve care delivery development.